[muckshot]

I'm finally going to buy a portable player and I was thinking of getting an Ipod photo. I had previously wanted a Nano cause they're so goddam cute, but the small capacity and all the screen-scratch business has turned me off. At the moment I was planning on getting either a 20 gig Ipod photo or perhaps a 40 gig 5G Ipod (that is rumored to be released in a few days)... but I really would like to know a few things before I jump in. Please bear in mind that I know next to NOTHING about Ipod/Itunes so these questions might sound asinine...

Background: I've never used Itunes. I have about 40 gigs of MP3s, half of which are my own rips and the other half are downloaded. About 90% of them are tagged properly, while about 10% don't have tags. I currently listen to MP3s on the go through a CD player that supports MP3s. I don't use playlists, I use folders to organize my MP3s (my MP3 CD player reads folders, and organizes via folders and file names, so I don't NEED tags or playlists to keep things organized - though tags help a great deal).

Now, a few questions:

1) Does Itunes 'convert' MP3s into a proprietary format before syncing to the Ipod? (will all my MP3s be converted to AAC or whatever?)

2) Do I have to keep all the MP3s (that I want on my Ipod) on my hard-drive at all times? (if I get a 40 gig version, that is a lot of space to sacrifice on my HD!!)

3) I *think* Itunes supports folders... I was hoping it would be a drag and drop interface (like a potable HD or memory card) as my MP3s are organized into folders as I have said and many are not tagged. Will I have to tag or create playlists before being able to use the Ipod functionally?

4) Does the 4G Ipod SOUND good? I've read that many non-Mac players do a better job in the sound department, and even that the Nano/Shuffle/mini have preferable sound, is this true? (I currently have a pair of E2s and a PA2V2 Amp, alongside a pair of Beyer DT770s/80 in the mail)

I tried looking for FAQs online, but I either found Mac bashing, Ipod marketing or (most often) un-informative Mac/Ipod cheerleading. If anyone can provide any help to this Ipod newbie, it'd be greatly appreciated. And if you've actually read this far, please allow me to congratulate you on your perseverance

 

[blessingx]

1. No (only conversion it does is with WMA files on the PC version to AAC/MP3)
2. No (though you probably want to 'manually' moves files instead of auto-sync)
3. Yes (tag) / No (playlist)
4. Depends on who you ask (though this has little to do with Mac/non-Mac users)

I say download iTunes and play with it a bit. You'll either warm or not, but either way it uses tags to organize (iTunes and iPod). Just be aware it takes some time for tag/db people to get use to folder structure and folder people to get use to tag/db. Personally, I don't know how people deal with folders once your collection is tagged properly, though there are those that feel opposite.

Since you mentioned Macs, if you're on an OS X machine, these can help manipulating files through tags quite comprehensive.

 

[muckshot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by blessingx 1. No (only conversion it does is with WMA files on the PC version to AAC/MP3) 2. No (though you probably want to 'manually' moves files instead of auto-sync) 3. Yes (tag) / No (playlist) 4. Depends on who you ask (though this has little to do with Mac/non-Mac users) I say download iTunes and play with it a bit. You'll either warm or not, but either way it uses tags to organize (iTunes and iPod). Just be aware it takes some time for tag/db people to get use to folder structure and folder people to get use to tag/db. Personally, I don't know how people deal with folders once your collection is tagged properly, though there are those that feel opposite. Since you mentioned Macs, if you're on an OS X machine, these can help manipulating files through tags quite comprehensive.

Thanks so much for the info

I suppose it won't be much of a problem to tag the remaining 10% of my files, and now that I know there won't be issues with conversion, I think I could very vell try the Ipod route.

I didn't clairfy about my setup, I've got a PC so the mac appz won;t do me much good, but thanks for the link anyhow

Now let's see if they release those fifth gen Ipods...

 

[muckshot]

Whoa, and I just noticed all the links in your sig, I'll do some digging, thanks.

 

[muckshot]

Hey, does the Ipod support gapless playback for MP3s? I don't plan to convert my files to AAC...

 

[blessingx]

Some of the links are OS X only. PC only apps get passed around here more often, so I just wanted to collect them for us minority OS people.

MP3 isn't gapless by nature, so there's only a few that read and adjust to overcome. This includes the Rio Karma. AAC is also not inherently gapless either (so conversion wouldn't help). Vorbis is though for the players that support it. For the iPod if gapless is required it's usually best to 'join all tracks' and rip to a single file. This only works for ripping from CDs though.

In case you're curious, the iPod supports WAV, AIFF, ALAC (Apple Lossless), AAC, MP3 and Audible.

Also in case you haven't seen them pop over to iLounge.com and iPoding.com for info (they tend to be very pro-iPod though).

 

[Spad]

I ordered my black nano on the day they were released and carry it (alone) in a shirt pocket with no protection of any kind. It is a fingerprint magnet, as are most things with highly polished surfaces, but I wipe it with a regular cotton handkerchief. Thus far it has no scratches, so the "screen-scratch business" seems a bit overstated.

If this is to be your sole DAP I doubt you'll be content with the nano's capacity for long. But if you plan to acquire others as well, the nano makes a wonderful, extremely convenient addition. I use mine unamped when I really want portability and revert to my 60/SM3/SA5K-DT880 in more stationary settings.

The current crop is the best so far, IMO. But I'd certainly recommend waiting to see what appears on the 12th.

 

[muckshot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by blessingx MP3 isn't gapless by nature, so there's only a few that read and adjust to overcome. This includes the Rio Karma. AAC is also not inherently gapless either (so conversion wouldn't help). Vorbis is though for the players that support it. For the iPod if gapless is required it's usually best to 'join all tracks' and rip to a single file. This only works for ripping from CDs though.

Ok, I didn't think that it'd do gapless, but neither does my current CD/MP3 player and it hardly affects my experience. Is there any way to add 'tracks' to a single MP3 file. IE: If I have a concert on a single MP3 and I transfer it to an Ipod, can I make a playlist or something that will skip ahead to specific times/sections of the MP3? I know I can manually track to the middle of an MP3 for example, but can it be set up to jump to specific pre-set positions in the recording?
I'll check the sites you sent, I have come across them but never really had reason to look around, until now. Thanks again.

 

[muckshot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spad I ordered my black nano on the day they were released and carry it (alone) in a shirt pocket with no protection of any kind. It is a fingerprint magnet, as are most things with highly polished surfaces, but I wipe it with a regular cotton handkerchief. Thus far it has no scratches, so the "screen-scratch business" seems a bit overstated. If this is to be your sole DAP I doubt you'll be content with the nano's capacity for long. But if you plan to acquire others as well, the nano makes a wonderful, extremely convenient addition. I use mine unamped when I really want portability and revert to my 60/SM3/SA5K-DT880 in more stationary settings. The current crop is the best so far, IMO. But I'd certainly recommend waiting to see what appears on the 12th.

I'm glad to hear you haven't had any problems with scratching, I've read my people saying the same thing regarding their Nano, but I've also read many people who claim the opposite. I went around town the first day the Nanos were released and EVERY place I went to had completely scratched up fronts and they'd only been on display for a few hours. My guess is that (as with the cracking/defective LCD screens) there may have been bad batches of Nanos and I figure Apple will probably just quietly modify the plastic or increae quality control for future Nano production. Pure conjecture, but it would seem to make sense from what I've read so far.

 

[blessingx]

There's a kinda hack with an Apple podcast tool that possible (but requires AAC - see gapless link in sig) by creating 'chapters', but it's only available on the Mac right now.